Mouse-over text: “Do you feel like the answer depends on whether you’re currently in the hole, versus when you refer to the events later after you get out? Assuming you get out.”
Linguistics
Pronounce bruschetta, schism, and schedule. Go ahead. I’ll wait.
No, the “sch” in bruschetta is not pronounced like the English “sh”! It’s pronounced like the English “sk.” Bruschetta is an Italian word, not a German word, so don’t pronounce it as in Schadenfreude, to quote James Harbeck in the link below. Actually, the issue is slightly more… Read More ›
Not possible! What are emojis doing in 1807?
How much of this advertisement (from 1807!) can you figure out? Note that it says “hieroglyphical” where we would have said “rebus” when I was a kid or “emojis” today. You’ll probably do much better at reading it than I… Read More ›
The true name of the bear (in XKCD, not Vernor Vinge)
True names are important: if somebody knows your true name, they have power over you. I’m not talking about Vernor Vinge’s important novella, True Names, although there is definitely a strong connection with it. Many contributors to social media, as we know,… Read More ›
What’s wrong with spelling reform anyway? And what about the Shaw Alphabet?
I’ve heard that there are some people who think that English spelling is difficult. In fact, I think I know a couple of them. But nobody has to spend years learning how to spell Spanish words, so why do we… Read More ›
I am the very model of…
No, I’m not talking about Tom Lehrer’s famous song, “The Elements,” nor about n–2 others of the n parodies of Gilbert & Sullivan’s Major General’s song, where n must be a large number. I’m talking about “I Am the very Model of a Biblical… Read More ›
Who remembers diagramming sentences? And what does it have to do with Facebook? And the Supreme Court?
Who remembers diagramming sentences? I do, I do! If you’re my age, you never forget the experience of diagramming sentences. Love it or hate it (I was one of the few who loved it), you don’t forget it. Maybe you forget… Read More ›
It’s pronounced “GIF”!
That headline isn’t very helpful, as you have no doubt figured out. After all, it’s spelled “GIF,” but it’s pronounced with a hard G as in “gift” — or perhaps with a soft G as in “giraffe.” But which? You probably know the answer…… Read More ›
Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra… and Gavagai… and intertextuality!
Hmmm… how can you communicate with someone when the two of you have no language in common? In linguistics this has been a major conundrum, especially in earlier centuries when there was no worldwide communication; in science fiction it has… Read More ›
Is this really what (male) math professors are like?
The philosophers in the program were kind and excellent teachers, but the math professors I met in those days were somewhat less skilled at teaching or relating to people. One told us that we should think of him as a… Read More ›
International Translation Day (OK, OK, so I’m a few days late)
Why is a lion a typical translator’s pet? That’s surely your first question on looking at the image that accompanies a post titled Koran dankon, tradukistoj, by the great Gaston Dorren, who posts all too infrequently. (In case that sentence is… Read More ›
(Yawn. It’s so early in the morning.) What do all these people have in common?
Tim Cook, Richard Branson, Benjamin Franklin, Rachel Ray, Napoleon Bonaparte, Ernest Hemingway, and Michelle Obama: what do these seven people have in common? Or is it too early in the morning for you? The answer to the first question, according to… Read More ›
Scots (the language, not the people) (not to be confused with Gaelic, nor with Ulster-Scots, nor with Scottish English)
The Scots language has been in the news! Until a few years ago I didn’t even know what Scots is. Do you? If you’ve read my post of August 15, you do. Otherwise there’s a good chance that you don’t know, or… Read More ›
Is translation even possible?
“What a silly question!” you reply. “We translate sentences in high-school language classes all the time!” Do you? You might not do that at all (perhaps you took a total immersion class) but let that pass. You probably did at… Read More ›
“Even Racists Got the Blues”
Let’s assume that you neither speak nor read Irish. (Probably a safe guess.) I, too, neither speak nor read Irish. But work with me here. Study this image, which shows an American wearing a custom tee shirt. Without knowing any Irish,… Read More ›
Greek! (The Ingenious Language)
Where do I begin when I try to describe this marvelous book? If you look at the cover (see image at the bottom of this post), you’ll see that the full title of this book is The Ingenious Language: Nine Epic… Read More ›
Greek! (The Ingenious Language)
Where do I begin when I try to describe this marvelous book? If you look at the cover (see image at the bottom of this post), you’ll see that the full title of this book is The Ingenious Language: Nine Epic… Read More ›
Hebrew Script Hacking
How is this book different from all other books in the series? I’m referring to Teach Yourself Library’s Script Hacking series, which teaches you several alphabetical writing systems — a limited objective, and the series does a good job with it. Little… Read More ›
Quite a bicycle!
Well, it does have two wheels, but I’m still skeptical. At least it says it’s “low emission.” Legal definition of bicycle, anyone?
Agoraphobia and other pronunciation conundra
Quick! How do you pronounce agoraphobia (a word we hear too much these days)? In particular, do you stress the first syllable and have a short /o/ in the second, or stress the first syllable but have a silent /o/ in the… Read More ›
Learning Strategies 